I have trouble with the stall theory. I agree they would have been at the back of the power curve, possibly with the stick shaker rattling away but not fully stalled. That aeroplane touched down gently enough not to break its back and slid more or less intact to a full stop. Fully stalled they would have hit much harder. AF447 in the South Atlantic quickly developed a sink rate in a fully developed stall of over 11,000 feet/min.
An empty 737-300 Freighter has a basic weight of around 31 tons. I have no idea on the weight of the fixed firefighting gear but assuming they had at least the fuel to go home plus reserves I would take a guess they would be around the 40-ton mark. A close friend who has flown this kind of operation claims 120 knots is an ideal dropping speed. This would place them at these weights very close to VREF with little margin for error. Smoke coupled with a subtle rising ground, and it is not hard to see a ground contact threat.
737's have a habit of breaking the fuselage both forward and aft of the wing box section. The 737-200 in the Hawaiian ditching was a classic example. A professional crew like this one would not have allowed a fully developed stall to occur. They may have run out of performance options and even allowed it to touch down to avoid a stall.
Anyhow, whatever the cause a lucky crew and a great outcome.
Last edited by By George; 18th Feb 2023 at 20:52.